Floating docks comprising multidirectional floating dock elements are well known. Floating docks can be constructed from subunit dock elements having projecting tabs at their edges for attachment to adjacent dock elements.
For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,529,013, 5,682,833, 5,947,050, 6,431,106 and 5,931,113 teach a floating drive-on dock assembled using parallelepiped shaped units. The docks generally consist of two arms (single rows) of hollow and airtight floatation units. Between the arms is an area open to the water surface. At the distal end of the two arms, a floatation unit connects the arms together to prevent the arms from spreading apart as a craft is driven onto the arms.
The open centre of the above type of drive-on dock does not provide sufficient guiding for several types of boat hulls. In particular, the drive-on dock is unsuitable for sailboats which cannot be driven onto the dock. Furthermore, sailboats have a depending keel which either interferes with passage onto a dock of this type, or causes the two arms to spread apart undesirably. In either case, damage to the underside of the hull and/or keel may occur.
Consequently, sailboats are not docked on drive-on docks. Either they are hoisted vertically clear of the water using a hydraulic lift, examples of which are provided at http://www.boatlift.com. Alternatively, they may be winched out of the water onto a road trailer, examples of which are provided at http:/www.sbstrailers.com/. The latter requires sufficient waterside access for both the trailer and towing vehicle, which may not be convenient or even possible.
It is an object of the invention to provide a floating dock suitable for docking sailboats, which improves upon the known systems described above.